The cyperaceae (sedge family) is a very large and widely distributed group of grass-like plants; the US has well over 1,000 species (in 32 genera), more than half of which are in the carex genus. Plants have stems which are (usually) triangular in cross-section, and narrow, strap-like leaves arranged in groups of three, in contrast to true grasses for which the stems are cylindrical, and leaves occur in pairs. The inflorescence is a cluster of small spikelets, growing from the terminal leaf node.